Feb 2014

IIBA roundtable discussion with His Excellency, the Ambassador of Ireland to India, Feilim Mc Laughlin.

l-r George Kiely, Enterprise Ireland, His Excellency, Feilim McLaughlin, Ambassador of Ireland to India and Sumit Mullick, Chairman of Ireland India Business Association

On Tuesday, 4th March, the Ireland India Business Association in association with KPMG held a roundtable discussion with His Excellency, the Ambassador of Ireland to India, Feilim Mc Laughlin.

The event was facilitated by Nilakanthi Ford of KFV Consulting and was held for senior management of Irish companies in India and Indian companies based here in Ireland.

Among a range of topics, the Ambassador discussed inward investment opportunities in India, reflecting on the influence that the looming elections is having on the foreign investment market. He also reviewed the present status of the ongoing Free Trade Agreement negotiations between the EU and India.

l-r Sumit Mullick, IIBA Chairman, Nilakanthi Ford, KFV Consulting and Mike Gibbons, KPMG

To view more images click here

The Unitas team are delighted to present you yet another colourful event, Festival of Colors 2014 on Sunday, 16 March in 2014 in National Basket Ball Arena, Tallaght.

We would like you to come along enjoy bollywood music, dance, Indian food, play with Colors and enjoy the day. See attached flyers for detail.

Festival of colors - aka - Holi is an ancient Indian festival celebrated to welcome bright, pleasant colorful spring season. People celebrate by throwing and painting colours on each other..Colours unite people beyond race, religion, language and culture... Festival of Colors - Holi is a community event which is open to all in Ireland.

One ticket for € 9 or Two for €15

Children Under 12 go Free

Visit www.festivalofcolors.ie for more info. Tickets can be bought online from tickets.ie. For more information please contact us on info@unitasisac.ie

European Union European Roadshow 2014
Research, Innovation & Higher Education Presenting collaboration opportunities between Europe and India

9th January to 31st March 2014

The roadshow is a series of one day information sessions

organized throughout India to showcase and promote EU India collaboration in R&I and Higher Education.The Delegation of the European Union to India, in partnership with its Member States, Countries Associated to the Horizon 2020 program, and associated partners such as R&I support services are jointly organizing a third series of information seminars throughout India to raise awareness amongst Indian research and innovation (R&I) community about EU-India co-operation opportunities in R&I and Higher Education, including mobility schemes open to Indian students and support services such as partner search tools.

Throughout the roadshow, about 30 European* R&I counsellors andrepresentatives of European research organizations will make some 84 presentations in 16 key R&I hot spots in India over a three months period. Indian participants in past cooperation programs with Europe will also present their experiences and lessons learnt. A key objective of the roadshow is to promote Indian participation in EU research programmes, in accordance with the EU-India Joint Declaration on Research and Innovation Cooperation signed at the last EU-India Summit (New Delhi, February 2012). They will also encourage newstakeholders - e.g. research institutes less accustomed to EU programs,and industry -to take part, and to engage into international co-operation in areas of mutual interest. Information ondates and locations for next stops are also available to view here

Participation is free-of-charge but registration is required.

Online registration click here

Source:

The European Union Delegation to India

As part of the Ireland India Institute Public Lercture series 2014,DCU are running a special lecture on 27th March on Foreign Policy in India with HE Smt Radhika Lal Lokesh, Ambassador of India, Ireland in Room CGO4, DCU.

This is part of a public lecture series, however places are limited.

RSVP to attend: India@dcu.ie

MyPlace Connect Delve

into Indian Market

MyPlace Connect, Ireland's largest free WiFi network has just announced its entry into the Indian market. Already MyPlace Connect have over 1,000 new users through the India expansion with more signing up every day. This expansion is the latest from MyPlace Connect, who had made services available in Germany, France, Switzerland, the UK, the USA and the Netherlands before the end of 2013.

The MyPlace Connect WiFi network is solely funded by the venues in which the service is available. The service eliminates the need for codes to access the internet and to make it even more convenient customers are always remembered by the system through a one off registration. The service is always free and as a result MyPlace Connect has already signed up over 400,000 users in Ireland alone.

By allowing the venues to pay a monthly fee the cost of providing WiFi at such a high capacity is minimised for MyPlace Connect customers. This international expansion shows that businesses from all over are becoming more and more aware that free WiFi is a vital driver for business.

Kshitij Pandey, Head of IT at Canvas Laugh Factory, was eager to work with the Irish company. He stated; "We did a lot of research before choosing a WiFi hotspot provider - we looked at companies from all over the world. What stood out for us with MyPlace Connect was the technology behind the service and the level of innovation used. We knew from the beginning that they understood and listened to their customers and have built a wonderful tool to allow us to market to our customers."

Peadar Gormley, the CEO and Founder of MyPlace Connect, is confident the company's wave of expansion will continue; "There is a growing Asian market and it is an area we hope to target in 2014. Now that we have our first Indian customer, it has allowed us to understand the needs and wants of customers in that part in the world. The market intelligence gained has been invaluable and I believe the company can only go up from here."

Initially developed as an advertising platform, MyPlace Connect has grown to become a highly adaptable, mobile cloud based, hotspot solution.

Issue: 2

Indian Elections 2014

New Dellhi, Mar 5 (PTI): Lok Sabha elections

will be held from April 7 to May 12, spread over nine days and involving an electorate of 814 million, making it the biggest election the world has ever seen.

Counting of votes in all the 543 Lok Sabha constituencies will be held on a single day, May 16, Chief Election Commissioner V S Sampath announced at a press conference flanked by commissioners H S Brahma and S N A Zaidi.

Assembly elections will also be held simultaneously in the states of Andhra Pradesh, including Telangana region, Odisha and Sikkim.

Courtesy of The Telegraph

IIBA Cork Chapter organised Business Seminar on 'Entering the Indian Market'

Thursday Feb. 13th

The Boardroom, Port of Cork

Michael Dineen, Contracting Plus shared the journey of the Contracting Plus business expansion into India.

Michael highlighted the potential of India as the world's outsourcing hub while noting the commonalities with Ireland in Business, Education, Tax, Finance and IT etc. as a legacy of India's positioning in the British Empire where highlighted as advantages to doing business in India. The advantages of rural business locations over the large metros were outlined: stronger community relationships, staff retention and competitiveness.

Contracting Plus India Official Video

Mr Dineen's Business Tips included:

*Researching and understanding Indian national and local history

*Targeting 1 Indian Market is a mistake - each state has its own intricacies

*Build trust. Don't over-promise and plan for a 3-5 year process

*Gujarat is a great entry-point to India due to its infrastructure and laws.

The Next IIBA Cork Chapter Event is Planned for April 2014.

Lunchtime Seminar

Doing Business in india- Points to Consider

in association with

Organisations trying to understand why and how to enter to India were treated to a special lunchtime seminar in Alexander House, Regus' Head Office in Ballsbridge, Dublin 4 on Wednesday Feb 26th.

The seminar was also aimed at companies already in India looking to be even more effective and managers running cross cultural teams between Ireland and India.

Speakers on the day included: Nikanthi Ford of KFV Consulting, Shaun Saurin of Regus and Entrepeneur and advisor to the Department of Enterprise Trade and Employment on Entrepeneurship, Daniel Ramamoorthy.

Mr Raghav Mathur a partner in the Corporate, Private Equity and Finance Groups with the Gurgaon Office of Desai and Diwanji was a special guest and joined the panel after the presentations for a Q&A session.

Etihad Logo

Etihad Airways, the national

airline of the United Arab Emirates

and World's Leading Airline for the

fifth year in a row at the World

Travel Awards, is offering Irish

guests the opportunity to experience

Pearl Business Class, the most

luxurious way to fly for business and

pleasure, at a special promotional

rate.

Guests wishing to take advantage of the

"Fly Higher For Lower" promotion

can enjoy warm hospitality,

individual attention and

award-winning cuisine when they buy

a Pearl Business Class return

ticket from Dublin to Abu Dhabi from

just €1,767, or to a range of other

exciting destinations, with

convenient connections via

Abu Dhabi including:

Abu Dhabi / Dubai from €1,767

Muscat from €1,761

Bangkok from €1,937

All fares are inclusive of taxes

and surcharges and Pearl

Business class ticket holders

receive full access to all

premium facilities and

benefits including Etihad

Airways' Business class

airport lounges and chauffeur

service, all for a price similar

to Coral Economy fares.

This Etihad Airways promotion is available to guests who book tickets

before March 5th 2014. All travel must be taken before November 30th 2014 subject to availability.

Some blackout dates and terms and conditions may apply.

Etihad Airways recently announced

it will increase its Abu Dhabi-Dublin service from ten flights per week, to double daily from 15 July 2014.

The frequency boost of 40 per cent

will provide 8,988 seats each week

between the capital cities of the

UAE and Ireland.

The schedule for the double daily

flights will ensure connectivity both

ways with 800 weekly connections

to 45 Etihad Airways destinations in

the Middle East, Africa and Asia, including Bangkok,Beijing, Brisbane,

Jakarta, KualaLumpur, Manila,

Melbourne, Perth, Singapore, Sydney and Tokyo.

Etihad Airways is recognised as having the best Business class product flying out of Ireland; having won numerous awards for the service. The most recent award was at the 22nd Irish Travel Trade News Awards.

To book, please call Etihad Airways on 01-656 9900 or visit www.etihad.com or contact your local travel agent.

KFV LOGO

To help your company get ahead, KFVC would like to offer Irish companies a range of services:

Combined with their multi-cultural understanding of business behaviours in different locations, KFVC offers to support organisations working across borders.

* Coaching - We use our combined unique approaches to coach and consult senior executives worldwide. We create new possibilities and futures for organizations.

* Leadership Development - We ensure that the people are aligned and operate from a sense of ownership and accountability.

* Talent management and Succession Planning - We help organizations develop their leaders and bring internal talent to focus on global activities

* Organisational restructuring - We advise on organisational design and development

* Strategic planning- scenario thinking and options planning

KFVC have put together a programme for Irish companies looking to expand globally. IIBA members can avail of a 10% discount on workshop delegate rates.

Contact: Kanthi@kfvconsulting.com

Tel: +353 (0)1 619 0693

BordBia MarketingFellowship

Programme with UCD.

This is a fully funded, 12-month action learning programme which gives participants the combined opportunity to gain hands-on experience working in a foreign location with some of Ireland's most respected food and drink companies while also studying for an MSc International Marketing Practice masters at the UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School.

More info at

www.smurfitschool.ie/bordbia